“Synecdoche,” our teacher said, “is part for the whole or whole for the part,” a statement as incomprehensible to teenage ears as was the word itself. “England beat South Africa,” came his follow-up, “that’s whole
Thoughts on extinctionThoughts on extinction
As a child, the Natural History Museum was an important part of my life. There I saw what before only books had held: living animals. No, I know the difference between a zoo and a
The Pinhead FactorThe Pinhead Factor
In 1964, I read that Bob Hayes ran, from a flying start, the final 100 yards of the Men’s 4 X110 Olympic Relay in 7.8 seconds. In 1966, I knew the names and LP releases
Mr Polly’s golfing observationMr Polly’s golfing observation
At the age of fourteen I was exposed to Mr Polly. Fourteen is an impressionable age; it is also one of intense reactions. The History of Mr Polly is a novel by HG Wells. With
The globe unpluggedThe globe unplugged
The globe irritated me. I could not kick it because it was stationed in a protective bracket and, although it was a ball like the others, didn’t look right, slanted at its axial angle. Even
And their stars will shineAnd their stars will shine
I grew up with kings and queens: they were in my story books. I grew up with the government: they were in my parents’ conversations. I grew up with the church: they were in white
The InnocenceThe Innocence
He hadn’t déjà-vued in years. When young it had happened quite frequently. “Oh, that’s a déjà -vu,” someone told him, “it happens to me sometimes.” He had seen the dog die. It was a short-muzzled
Seeing the starsSeeing the stars
Once upon a time I lived in a country where there was light pollution – in its cities at least – but matters in South Africa have recently deteriorated to such an extent that now
BRAWDEKBRAWDEK
Athol Braaf snarled. Window of opportunity – what life coaches prate about – but in this case the window was red. Nowhere in his holiday destination were there four days not OCCUPIED. Even converted garden
FLOC !FLOC !
More words rhyme with “pool” than “floc”. Leading the field are cool, fool and tool, which deal quite adequately with the opposition posed by rock, stock and cock. But when you saw FLOC, did your